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Washington, D.C. – Rev. Lennox Yearwood Jr., President & CEO of Hip Hop Caucus, today released the statement below about the tragic and senseless attack at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival in Las Vegas last night. The terrorist attack left over 50 people dead and 400 injured, in the most deadly mass shooting in modern United States history.
“Our thoughts and prayers go out to all of the victims that lost their lives from this absolute senseless attack. It is hard to comprehend why this would happen and we grieve with the families and friends of the victims in this dark time. They will never be forgotten.”
“We call for a renewed focus and immediate action on America’s gun policies and mental health issues. Weapons created for the battlefield are easily accessible in this country, including high powered rifles with extended magazines. Mental health issues too often go unaddressed and combined with unlimited access to increasingly sophisticated and powerful weapons, we continue to see tragedies unfold. From Columbine High School, to Sandy Hook Elementary School, to Pulse Nightclub, now Mandalay Bay on the Las Vegas strip – enough is enough. Let us come together and call on our elected leaders to take action that is needed to protect us against these senseless acts as much as possible. More can be done. What is it going to take for our leaders to act? How many more innocent people need to die and how many more families need to be destroyed?”
“Music is a unifying force – people attend concerts because of their shared love of music, whether it is country or hip hop. It is truly devastating to see that love and unity at a concert disrupted by such a despicable act. Instilling fear in the public through mass shootings is the definition of terrorism. Let us grieve now and also use this moment to come together to call for meaningful action to protect ourselves, family members, friends, neighbors, and fellow citizens in the future.”
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